Field
The disclosed embodiments relate to techniques for driving displays from a computer system. More specifically, the disclosed embodiments relate to techniques for driving displays with different pixel densities by using a resolution-independent virtual display.
Related Art
Interactions between a user and a computer system may be facilitated by connecting multiple displays to the computer system. For example, the connection of an external monitor to a laptop computer may allow the user of the laptop computer to simultaneously view more documents, media files (e.g., video, images, etc.), and/or graphical user interfaces (GUIs) for applications than would be possible with just the laptop computer's built-in monitor. Furthermore, the laptop computer may include a standardized video interface such as Digital Visual Interface (DVI) or High-Definition Multimedia Interface (HDMI) that allows the laptop computer to be connected to displays with different resolutions, pixel densities, color profiles, and/or color depths.
However, graphical output may appear differently on displays with different pixel densities, color profiles, and/or color depths. For example, mirroring of displays with different color spaces may produce noticeable differences in the displays' color outputs, as well as the inaccurate generation of colors in at least some of the displays. Similarly, graphical output on a display with a high pixel density may appear smaller than on a display with a normal pixel density, causing potential problems with viewing of the graphical output and/or the usability of applications associated with the graphical output.
Hence, what is needed is a mechanism for facilitating the production of device-independent graphical output for different displays.